July 15, 2022

Friday Night Photos

Happy Friday! It definitely doesn't feel like the weekend. My days are kind of messed up because Jerry traded shifts at work in order to be off on Noah's birthday. I felt like Wednesday was a weekend, so it's nice to have what feels like a second weekend!

I FaceTimed Joey yesterday (yes, the dog) because I was curious how he would react to my voice. Jeanie was out for a walk with him and Bentley, her basset hound, when I called. Joey was sniffing some bushes and didn't even look up when I was calling his name, haha. I was hoping to get a screenshot of our FaceTime call, but he was clearly having too much fun on his walk to pay any attention to me.

Here are the random photos I have from this week...

I had plans to visit my friend Jenni in Toledo last weekend; I had to reschedule last time because I got COVID. I went out to the car when it was time to leave and the tire pressure warning came on. I got out and looked at the tire--it was blindingly obvious what the issue was. I was NOT happy! I had to cancel on Jenni (again). Jerry put enough air in the tire to drive it to get fixed. They were able to patch it, but I still get nervous driving on it!



I love sweet potatoes, but whenever I want to roast some for a grain bowl, I always wish I had already peeled and cut them. This time, I bought three sweet potatoes; I roasted one already to keep in the fridge, but the other two filled this whole gallon-size bag! I put it in the freezer so I can just pull out enough sweet potatoes to cook for that meal.


I also added some of the lemon pepper tofu "cutlets" I made. I can't even describe what a game-changer the cutlets were; they were SO GOOD. The seasoning was mild enough to go with several different types of dishes and the texture was like chicken. I know they look dry and hard as a rock in this picture, but they weren't. Jerry kept raving about them and said it's the best thing I've made so far since becoming vegan. He wants me to make more.


I put them in a grain bowl with farro and peas, and topped with a homemade tahini dressing. (Who even am I?! Tofu, farro, tahini... it's so funny how much my diet has changed in six months.) I'd never tried farro before, but I really like it.

The tofu kind of looks like croutons, haha


Noah changed his mind about what he wanted to do for his birthday; rather than La Pita and the Henry Ford Museum, he decided to go to Barnes & Noble instead (I could spend an entire day in there, so I was thrilled) and then he chose Red Robin for dinner. 

He didn't understand why I wanted to take his picture in front of Barnes & Noble, but I thought it would be good for memories. When he's my age and can't remember what we did for his 18th birthday, we can just look back through the pictures.



I saw this sign inside and I thought it was cute for book lovers!



Next was Red Robin. Since the pandemic started, I'd only been out to eat TWICE. It felt so odd to go to a restaurant. Speaking of how much my diet has changed, look at this very sad-looking dinner at Red Robin:


First, I will say it was better than it looked. However, when Noah chose Red Robin, I thought for sure they'd have a good vegan burger. Well, none of the buns are vegan, so I had to do a lettuce wrap. I wanted sweet potato fries, but when I asked the server and she asked the cook, she said the fries were not vegan. I was really surprised by that!

My side options were a side salad or broccoli--haha! The "burger" patty was vegan and they put a few slices of avocado on there along with some salsa. The patty was really good, but the salsa had cinnamon in it and I definitely would not get that salsa next time.

When I got in the car, I googled the fries issue out of curiosity and learned that Red Robin's official statement is that their fries are not vegan because they could be cross-contaminated using the same fryer as non-vegan foods. (I think this is more for allergy reasons; they don't want to tell someone with a severe allergy that there are no eggs or dairy, only for that person to have a reaction due to cross contamination.) The fries themselves, though, are vegan. If I go back, I'd be fine with eating the fries. Some restaurants even have a designated fryer for people with allergies.

I have to say, it was really nice to go out as a family! We haven't done that in a long time. As we were sitting at the booth, my heart just felt really full and happy. While I absolutely miss when my kids were little, having teenagers is a lot of fun.


Yesterday, Jerry and I went to Goodwill because I am in desperate need of shirts that aren't hoodies (or at least winter clothes). Also, I only have a couple of pairs of jeans that fit well and are comfortable. Even the ones I bought a few months ago are too big to wear.

I really liked this tie-dyed shirt. The fabric is thinner than it looks and it's a light color, so as far as I'm concerned, it's fine for summer. (I don't like to wear short-sleeved shirts)


I had the hem tucked under a little because the hem is is just plain and straight across, but I'd like to add a very thin elastic at the bottom just to keep it from flowing out and making me look a lot bigger than I am.

I wasn't sure about buying this orange shirt (it's a crop top, which I would never wear!) but I absolutely LOVE the fabric--it's super cozy and the color is my favorite. I just wished the top was longer. Anyway, I couldn't help but buy it and hope I could come up with a way to alter it (adding a contrasting fabric at the bottom or otherwise repurposing it). If you have ideas, please let me know!



This was my "find of the day"--I was so excited about this! It's an Army-issued mummy bag, which sounds odd for a 40-year old woman to be excited about buying. However, I like to lie inside of a sleeping bag in the evenings because I'm always so cold. When I saw this bag in perfect condition for only $5, I snatched it up.


I used the label to look it up when I got home and it's a bag that was used in Army during the Vietnam-era--so cool!

I washed it super carefully--it's not supposed to be machine washed, but considering I bought it used, I felt like it needed more than a spot-cleaning. It came out of the washer and dryer perfectly. Whoever owned it stored it very well; I couldn't have bought a nicer bag for less than $150-200.

Jerry and I went to our friends' Dave and Renee's house on Tuesday to catch up with them. They have so many more chickens than they did the last time I was there! Renee gave me some eggs to bring home for the family. I think it would be fun to have chickens! But I'm definitely not ready for anything like that and I don't live in an ideal place for it.


And that's all I've got. Have a great weekend! xo

4 comments:

  1. We've been buying farm fresh eggs locally for $2 a dozen. So much better than from a store! And we think they're cheap, so we give a tip as well.

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  2. For the crop top you could layer it over a tank top or a t-shirt so everything is covered and still get to enjoy your new find.

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  3. Katie, I wear a thin tank under my cropped items which covers my tummy. You can wear a similar color or contrast it. Do you have Crossroads Trading nearby or My Sister's Closet? They are two of my favorites for consignment clothing.

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  4. You could also try wearing the crop top with high waisted jeans or leggings. A sliver of skin might show, but it's usually at the thinnest part of your waist and can actually be really flattering!

    ReplyDelete

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